What are the two newest national parks?

Many current national parks had been previously protected as national monuments by the president under the Antiquities Act or as other designations created by Congress before being redesignated by Congress; the newest national park is New River Gorge, previously a National River, and the most recent entirely new park ...



As of February 2026, the two newest additions to the U.S. National Park system remain New River Gorge National Park and Preserve in West Virginia and White Sands National Park in New Mexico. New River Gorge was redesigned from a National River to a National Park in late 2020, offering 70,000 acres of world-class rock climbing, whitewater rafting, and the iconic New River Gorge Bridge. White Sands became a National Park in late 2019, protecting 275 square miles of the world's largest gypsum dunefield, which creates a surreal, snow-white landscape in the Chihuahuan Desert. While there has been significant legislative discussion in 2025 and 2026 regarding elevating sites like Ocmulgee Mounds in Georgia or the Delaware Water Gap, New River Gorge and White Sands currently hold the distinction of being the "youngest" of the 63 major U.S. National Parks.

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The New River Gorge was given National Park Service protection in 1978 as a national river, and was expanded to New River Gorge National Park & Preserve ? this country's newest national park ? in the plague year of 2020 courtesy of legislation drafted by Senators Joe Manchin and Shelley Moore Capito.

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The New River Gorge was given National Park Service protection in 1978 as a national river, and was expanded to New River Gorge National Park & Preserve — this country's newest national park — in the plague year of 2020 courtesy of legislation drafted by Senators Joe Manchin and Shelley Moore Capito.

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The big 3 national parks: Yellowstone, Yosemite and Grand Canyon.

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The New River in West Virginia may be one of the oldest rivers in the world, but it's also the namesake of America's newest national park: New River Gorge National Park and Preserve.

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Thirty states and two U.S. territories have a total of 63 national parks. California has the most with nine, followed by Alaska with eight, Utah with five, and Colorado with four.

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Utah is home to 5 of the best national parks—Arches, Bryce Canyon, Canyonlands, Capitol Reef, and Zion—collectively known as the Mighty Five. Established between 1919 and 1971, these parks are famous for their spectacular red-rock formations, desert solitude, and more than 1,000 miles of hiking & trekking trails.

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Delaware is the only state in the country that does not have anational park, national monument, national historic site or anyother unit of the National Park Service.

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Yellowstone National Park - 1872 Grant designated Yellowstone as the first national park in the United States and the world. Today, the park is home to the world's largest collection of geysers, including the iconic Old Faithful.

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Yosemite National Park | October 1, 1890 Yellowstone is the official first national park in the U.S., but the idea to create the park originally came from President Abraham Lincoln when he signed the Yosemite Land Grant, back in 1864.

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With that, Moyenne Island National Park, the world's smallest national park, was born. It can be easy to imagine Grimshaw as an eccentric figure.

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The smallest site in the National Park System, the Thaddeus Kosciuszko National Memorial in downtown Philadelphia, honors a Polish freedom fighter who helped American colonists during the Revolutionary War and preserves the sweeping history of his life in only about 80 square meters of space.

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Australia leads the list of countries with the most national parks by an incredible distance, home to over 600 national parks. This compares to second position Thailand where there are 147 national parks.

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